Chương 102: Chapter 97-Mana Chosen Pools

Hunger. Thirst. Despair. I have felt all of these. Most of all today. The growl in my stomach. The parchedness of my throat. The weakness in my muscles. With what strength I have left… I… reach… for… a… cookie. The taste. The texture. The smell. It brings me back from the edge of death. This cookie. Is the cookie that saved me, The Chosen One. Therefore, it is named The Chosen Cookie. Its tale will be legendary. More famous than even The Chosen Blade. This Chosen Cookie will be the cookie that saves this world.

Beyond all doubt, I, The Chosen One, do declare this to be the immutable truth above all truths. YES! YES! YE-"Charlatan?" Penelope asks me with a worried look.

"Yeah. What's up?" I ask as my stomach growls.

"Are you okay?" she asks from above me.

"Oh yeah. Why do you ask?"

"You're… drooling." …I wipe the drool from my face and get up from the ground. Seems taking a nap on the ground is not the best idea. Far from the worst idea I've ever had, but not the best one.

"Did the Caretaker show up?" I ask. Hopper shakes his head.

"No, but he should be here any second now," he says from behind a bush.

"If he doesn't show up, I'm genuinely going to be angry with both of you. Whose idea was it to do this during lunch anyway?" I ask as I sit up. Penelope places her finger on my forehead and pushes. I fall back dramatically and hit the snowy ground.

"It was your idea, Charlatan."

"I know. It was a stupid idea, but when else were we going to catch him on his way back from his lunch break?" I ask myself.

"How do you know he goes on lunch break during lunch? You just heard about him," Penelope asks with an accusatory tone.

"I'm The Chosen One," I [Lie] without providing a single shred of a possible answer.

"That doesn't answer a thing," she says with a hint of annoyance.

"Give it up, Penelope. There's no use in trying to understand him," Hopper says in a slightly disrespectful tone.

"What do you mean by that, Hopper?"

"I said what I said." Sitting straight up, I look him straight in his eyes.

"Say it again." Penelope rolls her eyes and then pushes back to the ground.

"Both of you, cool it. You're letting the rage get to you."

"We are not," Hopper and I say in unison. Hopper's bunny ear twitches.

"Wait. I think I hear him." The three of us huddle behind the snowy bush. From here, we can see the entire courtyard. Now, where is he? My gaze flicks from one end of the courtyard to the other end. Student, student, professor, student, but no Caretaker.

"Where, Hopper?" Penelope asks. Hopper closes his eyes and focuses. He then opens them and points to… me?!

"Guys is that me?" I ask. Penelope and Hopper look at me and then back at the other me. In their confusion, I recognize that they are also seeing what I'm seeing. How could there- Shady! How dare that Shapeshifter shapeshift into my beautiful shape? How dare they?

"It's a Shapeshifter," I say with a hint of anger.

"Well, that makes more sense than there being two of you, I think," Hopper says as we watch Shady go to the base of the clock tower. Penelope squints.

"Hopper, what did you use to figure out that the Shapeshifter is the Caretaker?"

"The sound of his footsteps. Before lunch, I saw him and memorized the distinct sound of how he walks. That fake CJ has the exact same sound," Hopper explains.

"You can do that?" I ask.

"Yeah."

"What do I sound like?"

"Erratic." Penelope nods.

"That sounds about right."

"Dainty." Penelope furrows her brows.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm pretty sure Hopper's saying you dainty, isn't that right?" I ask with a shiteating grin.

"Is that right, Hopper?" Penelope asks with a venomous tone.

"Uh… Would you look at that? The Shapeshifter has entered the clocktower. They're probably heading towards the mana pools. We should get going," Hopper says as he changes the subject.

"Nice save," I whisper to him as we walk over to the clocktower base. The University clock tower spans high into the sky with a dark wood frame. A staple of the University, and thankfully one that Hopper and I broke into recently. It's how we knew there was an entrance to the mana pools in the clocktower. A lucky coincidence. Walking up to the door, I carefully pick the lock with ease. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"How very Chosen of you, Charlatan. Is this also a [Skill] that the Gods gave you?" she asks, poking fun as she does.

"Yes, the Gods believed in the idea that both good people and bad people lock doors. So, in their infinite wisdom, they provided me with the ability to bypass them. The Gods are truly wise," I [Lie] as I easily pick the lock. With the door unlocked, we walk into the room to find a set of stairs going up and not a single Shady Shapeshifter. Penelope looks around with confusion.

"I thought you guys said there was an entrance to the mana pools here. Where is it?" she asks with a hint of confusion.

"Uh, watch your-" Hopper says a tad bit too late as Penelope falls through the illusory stone floor. The sound of rustling can be heard as she presumably falls down the stairs.

"I think we should have told her before we entered the clock tower," I say as I wince at the sound of Penelope falling. The sounds stop, and then Penelope's head pops up from the illusory floor.

"You think?"

"Are you okay?" Hopper asks.

"Perfect. Well, don't just stand there. Come on," she orders as she ducks back under the floor. Following, we phase through the illusory floor to find a stone staircase. I remember this place. I accidentally fell in here when Hopper and I broke in here a while ago. Didn't go much further than this because we were pretty tired. Kind've forgotten all about it after that if I'm being entirely honest. Didn't seem important at the time. Going down the not-important staircase, we eventually make it to another door.

This one, though, has no lock. Odd. How in the hells are you supposed to get past that?

"Any clues, Penelope?" I ask as I lean against the wall.

"Hmm. Probably a complex locking magic circle. More than likely, I'll have to try a wide variety of unlocking methods. Should I start with something a bit more brute force or something more gentle?" she asks herself as she reveals a complex-looking magic circle on the door.

"How long do-" I ask.

"Done," Penelope says as she opens the door to a large room. Hopper and I give her a surprised look.

"Didn't you say that was complex?" I ask.

"Yes, for most people," she says with a knowing smile. The light blue glow of the mana pools gives the room an ethereal feel to it. I'm not quite sure why you would have exposed pools like this, seems like a hazard, but who am I to know? I mean, it's not like I'm standing next to one. Oh, wait, I am. What happens if I fall into a pool of pure MP? Do I become a god? Should I jump in voluntarily? Maybe just a dip, just my little toe. That's all. Nothing crazy. I'm sure I'll be fine. Penelope grabs me by the shoulder.

"For those of you who don't know. Pure MP is extremely toxic to the mortal body. Do not under any circumstances even think about jumping in," she says as she locks eyes with me. As we're distracted, Hopper looks around.

"I don't hear the Shapeshifter anymore. Be wary. They must be close."

"This place is pretty small. I don't think we'd miss-" My vision flips as I'm tackled. My assailant and I go tumbling, barely missing the mana pool as we land. As we go to attack, an arrow flies between.

"Woah! What in the hells, Hopper!? Aim next time," we both say. Hopper and Penelope look at each other and then back at the identical CJs. Well, this isn't good. Rubbing my forehead, I contemplate the idea of shooting both of them. It is not the worst idea. Considering how lucky the Charlatan is, he might survive. A sigh escapes me. As compelling as the plan sounds… I guess I can not do that.

"I'm the real CJ," Charlatan #1 says.

"No, I'm the real CJ," Charlatan #2 says. Hopper keeps his bow aimed at the twin Charlatans.

"Penelope? What exactly do we do here?" he asks me.

"If they move, shoot them," I say as I think about what to do.

"Are you kidding me, Penelope? That's your big plan?" C1 says.

"I hate to agree with the fake, but they're right. I'm an anxious fellow. I move a lot," he jokes.

"Can you not take this seriously?" I ask and immediately regret the question.

"Of course not," they say in unison.

"Hey, Arsonist. Put that lighter to good use and light us on fire," C2 says.

"Good idea, Shady. I'm sure you would like that, wouldn't you?" C1 says.

"What are you talking about? Fire is a Shapeshifter's weakness. Why wouldn't we use it to figure out which one of us is Shady?" C2 says.

"Enough. Both of you. Fire won't work. I'm sure this Shapeshifter has thought up a way to circumvent that weakness. I need…" I say as I think on how to tell them apart. This Shapeshifter is probably reading the real one's surface thoughts. Not to mention the Shapeshifter has nailed the Charlatan's body language. Down to the last detail. Which is making it difficult to tell them apart. Hopper looks between.

"I'm going to be honest, Penelope. I can't tell the difference between them," he says with a hint of worry.

"Don't worry, Hopper. I have a plan," I say as I ready myself. C1 looks over at C2.

"She has a plan. Ready yourself to be destroyed." C2 lets out a small laugh.

"And what exactly is this plan?" Pushing the two out of my mind, I focus on coalescing the light energy in the palm of my hand. Knowing the Charlatan, a direct shot from [Light Beam] might actually kill him. The same goes for the Shapeshifter, so that's a big no-no. Unless…

"What's my name?" I ask.

"Penelope Sylvian," they answer at the same time.

"How many Platinum coins do I have in my pouch, right now!?" I ask as the energy crackles in my hand.

"8," they both say in unison.

"What do you think of my hair?"

"Inconvenient," everyone in the rooms says in unison, including Hopper. With a glare at Hopper I continue.

"What's the answer to (8x5)-9+13?" I ask, hoping for one of them to answer the correct way.

"44!" C1 answers quickly.

"... 36?" C2 asks.

"Guess a number between 1 and 10," I say quickly.

"4," C1 says.

"8?" C2 asks.

"Got you!" I yell as I send a beam of light at the imposter… I hope.